A measure to expand the coverage of the Workers’ Compensation Insurance (WCI) to disasters involving workers’ commutes should have been approved during the final session of the 19th National Assembly, Chairman Lee Jae-gap of the Korea Workers’ Compensation & Welfare Service (COMMWEL) said.
COMMWEL Chairman Lee stressed the need for the passing of a similar bill by the 20th National Assembly, to be opened soon.
He regretted that the National Assembly failed to approve four labor reform bills, including a revision bill of the Act on Workers’ Compensation Insurance. President Park Geun-hye’s labor reform bills were discarded automatically. Ruling and opposition sides virtually agreed on acting on the issue of allowing the coverage of the WCI to communing workers, so a failure to gain approval of the issue was a great disappointment to COMMEL Chairman Lee.
Currently, workers are allowed to receive the benefits of the WCI only when they are involved in accidents while commuting via their company’s commuter buses. However, they have to shoulder medical costs on their own while commuting by foot or via cycles and private cars.
On the other hand, places such as Germany, France and Japan allow the comprehensive interpretation of the coverage of the WCOI toward accidents taking place between home and worksite.
The government and the ruling party submitted a revision bill of the Act on Workers’ Compensation Insurance, which would extend benefits of the WCI to workers who commute by foot or via transportation. That would take effect in 2017 for those on foot and 2020 for those who commute by private car.
The expanding of the WCI coverage to workers commuting by private cars would have seen beneficiaries rise to 94,000 annually, which is equivalent to the number of workers who now receive WCI benefits for industrial disasters annually. The expanded coverage would raise beneficiaries significantly, so it would bring tremendous changes in the paradigm of industrial disaster insurance, Lee said.
If an industrial disaster compensation system is introduced, commuters will be given compensations the same way workers are compensated for industrial disasters they face while on the duty. Commuters will be given a temporary incapacity benefit equivalent to 70 percent of their average wage on top of hospitalized costs. Currently, commuters can be compensated for accidents by automobile insurance companies, but benefits are lower compared to industrial disaster benefits they would receive in the case of the introduction of an industrial disaster compensation system.
COMMEL Chairman Lee said his agency will maximize the possible allowable levels in accordance with court rulings even before the National Assembly approves a revision bill to introduce an industrial disaster compensation system. Court rulings have recognized commuters’ industrial disaster benefits in an inevitable situation of transportation means.
As to a bigger financial burden on employers, Lee said the initial changes will cost an additional 150 billion won, rising to about 500 billion won to cover commuters using their private cars. But he said the industrial disaster compensation system for commuters can be introduced without an additional financial burden to employers in consideration of the WCI contributions estimated at about 11 trillion won.
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